Generalized Habituation of Concept Stimuli in Toddlers.

HABITUATION (Neuropsychology); AVERSIVE stimuli; TODDLERS; DISCRIMINATION (Sociology); FEMALES; GENDER; PHYSIOLOGY

Looking times of 36 children were recorded during subject-controlled presentation of slides. Habituation was demonstrated over repeated presentation of 6 slides from a single conceptual category (e.g., animals). In an immediate generalization test the 6 habituated slides were intermixed with 6 unfamiliar but similar slides from the same category and 6 slides from a novel category (e.g., fruits). Mean looking times were shortest for familiar slides, longer for categorically similar slides, and longest for categorically novel slides. Females showed generalized habituation from the familiar slides to the categorically similar slides, but looked significantly longer at those from the novel category. Males looked significantly longer at new slides from either the similar or the novel category than at the familiar slides, but on unfamiliar slides did not significantly discriminate between the similar and novel categories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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